Strangers Till Now
by MusicalLife17
Summary: True Feelings are realized and an agreement is made. J/S duh! please review rating may change in later chapters...dont know yet ... ON HIATUS
1. The Letter

The party had ended and Sarah was cleaning up her room

The party had ended and Sarah was cleaning up her room. All of a sudden she remembered. She jumped over her bed and over to her bookcase. She quickly searched the shelves until she found what she was looking for. She walked over to her mirror.

"Sir Didymus?" she whispered.

"Sir Didymus are you there?" Moments later a small figure appeared.

"My Lady, how may I be of assistance? He asked, bowing his head. "Does thou want another game of scrabble?" he wondered hopefully. "Not right now. I need you to deliver this letter to his majesty for me; it is of the utmost importance." Sarah said.

"Anything for thee my lady." replied Didymus. He bowed once more before disappearing from view.

"I just hope he reads it." Though Sarah.

Back in the Underground, Jareth was sitting in his throne among the chaos that was the goblin city. He was twirling a crystal between his fingers when one of his guards entered the room.

"Sire, the bridge watcher is here. He requests to see you." He exclaimed.

"Send him away." Sighed Jareth distractedly.

"But sire he says he holds a letter for you…from the mortal." Upon hearing this Jareth immediately took notice.

"Fine" he said.

"My lord I present a letter from lady Sarah." Announced Sir Didymus as he approached the throne.

"I don't want it" lied Jareth. Didymus paused.

"She knew his highness would say that. She also said that it was regarding his majesty's offer."

Jareth was silent for a moment.

"My offer you say?" he wondered.

"Yes My lord." answered Didymus.

"Alright I'll glance at it." Jareth sighed.

"As you wish, your majesty," Didymus answered as he left the throne room.

Jareth looked at the letter. After a brief moment of staring he decided to open it.

_Jareth,_

_After you read this you will never have to hear from me again._

_There are so many things I want to say to you yet this is not the best time._

_First of all I wish to apologize for the way I acted tonight. I was spoilt and bratty and I should never have treated you that way. As I said there are so many things I need to say but this is most important and I don't know if I'll ever get another chance. I love you. More than you'll ever know. You may believe that I'm too young or naive to know what love is but I know what my heart is telling me._

_I'm sorry for my actions tonight but you must understand that I had to think of Toby and not myself._

_I wish things could have turned out the way we both wanted and I hope someday you'll find it in your heart to forgive me_

_Forever Yours _

_Sarah Williams_

Jareth sat there stunned. She loved him. It was only hours ago that she said those words and broke his heart and yet she loved him. He didn't know what to do. Should he go talk to her? He watched from outside her window earlier that night during the night during her party and it looked at though she was happy to be rid of him. Although she did say she needed all of us…but that probably only meant her friends. Still he had to know if she had meant what she wrote in the letter. Or if she was playing a cruel joke just to tear away any remaining pieces of his heart away. She said the words. She knew what she was doing. Whenever she practiced in the park she could never remember that line but when it was the real thing she remembered straight away. Jareth sighed.

"Well there's only one way to find out for sure." He thought. "What else can she say to hurt me."


	2. Reunited

It took Sarah about an hour to get her room back to normal so that her dad or Karen would ever know that there was a party

It took Sarah about an hour to get her room back to normal so that her dad or Karen would ever know that there was a party. Once she cleaned up, she walked across the hall to Toby's room. He was blissfully asleep, unaware of the events that occurred that night and the sacrifices his sister made for him. Sure, she partially regretted wishing him away, but if she hadn't she never would have met her friends or… never would have fallen in love. Yes, she had fallen in love with the goblin king.

"but that doesn't matter anymore." Sarah though as she walked back to he room. "After what I said tonight he probably never wants to see me again."

"And how do you know what I want?"

Sarah turned around to see Jareth leaning against her window. She hardly recognized him. He didn't look like the same arrogant, selfish and not to mention handsome goblin king. His face looked worn out and tried. He looked like an ordinary guy… who had been left inconsolable…and yes he was still handsome. He sat down on her windowsill and pulled something out of his pocket. Sarah gasped when she realized what it was. Her letter.

"Did you mean it?" asked Jareth.

"About me being sorry?" asked Sarah. She knew what he meant but purposely pretended not to.

"Of course I did. I really didn't…"

"No." interrupted Jareth. "The part when you…"

"Said I loved you?" answered Sarah, sitting down beside him.

"Yes." Sighed Jareth, reluctant to hear what her response would be.

"…yes." whispered Sarah. Jareth lifted his head from his hands and looked at her. He opened his mouth to talk but before he could say anything Sarah silenced him with a kiss.

"I'm sorry." She blushed, looking down at her feet.

"I didn't know if I ever would have the chance again and after tonight I thought you hated me and then I …" it was Jareth's turn to silence her.

"Has anyone told you that you talk too much?" he laughed.

"Only once." Replied Sarah.

"And I could never hate you" said Jareth.

"Does this mean I'm forgiven?" wondered Sarah.

"Only as long as I am my darling." stated Jareth, as they both leaned in for another kiss…only to be interrupted by the sound of Toby crying.

"Don't worry I got him." yawned Sarah's dad, unsure if anyone else was awake.

"Care for a walk milady?" whispered Jareth, holding out his hand.

"Why of course noble sir." Laughed Sarah taking his hand and climbing out the window.

They walked to the park hand in hand until it started to rain. So they found shelter underneath a huge tree. They spent ages just lying there in each others arms talking. Sarah lay across Jareth's lap, playing with his fingers. He used the other hand to stroke her hair.

"Do you regret wishing Toby away?" asked Jareth.

"Not really." replied Sarah. Jareth was a little surprised.

"Really why not?" he wondered

"Well I do a bit, but if you think about it; if I hadn't I never would have found you." explained Sarah. Jareth smiled down at her and kissed her on the top of her head.

"But you do understand why I did it don't you?" asked Sarah.

"You couldn't risk your brother's life for your own happiness." answered Jareth.

"Yeah… by the way. Would you have really turned him in to a goblin if I had failed?"

"Of course not!" laughed Jareth. Sarah thought for a moment.

"There's still a problem." She sighed sadly.


	3. A Kiss and a Promise in the Falling Rain

"How is there a problem

"How is there a problem?" wondered Jareth. Sarah sat up so she was facing him.

"How much do you love me?" she asked.

"I love you with all my immortal soul. I wasn't to spend the rest of eternity with you. Os that the problem? My immortality?" Jareth asked.

"No that's not it." Sarah said. "You said you want to be with me forever right?"

"Yes of course my darling" said Jareth.

"And that would involve marriage yes?" wondered Sarah.

"I assume so" said Jareth. Then he thought about it for a moment.

"Is marriage the problem?" he wondered.

"Yes. Wait…No!" said Sarah. "Nothing would make me happier than to become your wife." This made Jareth smile. Sarah almost lost it.

"Well what's the problem then?" asked Jareth.

"It's just that i'm 15… if it was up to me … I would marry you right now." She exclaimed. Jareth smiled suggestively.

"Jareth I am not marrying you tonight!" she laughed.

"Well when CAN you marry me?" he whined. Sarah laughed.

"Well how long can you wait." She asked.

"For you Sarah Williams I can wait forever." Confessed Jareth.

"I doubt you'll have to wait that long. Although its good to know. it's just there's school and so many things I wanna do … not to mention my parents." She said.

Jareth's face then looked serious.

"ok here's the deal. I will wait until your 23rd birthday…you will defiantly ba considered an adult in your world by then. If by then you still wish to marry me …which I hope you will…you can! Agreed?" he asked. Sarah smiled.

"agreed." Jareth conjured a crystal. It hovered over Sarah's hand for a moment then popped to reveal a stunning silver ring with a green emerald on Sarah's ring ringer. It matched her eyes perfectly.

"To make it official!" declared Jareth. "I Jareth the goblin king, give you Sarah Williams this promise ring as a symbol of my undying love for you and as a promise that someday you will become my wife and queen." Sarah smiled and kissed him.

"So the next ring that will be on that finger will be an engagement ring?" she wondered.

"Yes my Sarah." Jareth replied happily.

"Care to dance milady?" asked Jareth.

"But its pouring." whined Sarah.

"Oh come on. I hear mortal girls wait their entire lives to dance in the rain…and with a handsome stranger no less." said Jareth.

"And how would you know?" joked Sarah

"Well haven't you?" joked Jareth, taking her hand.

"As a matter of fact I have." said Sarah.

They danced for what seemed life hours when they finally stopped and gazed into each others eyes. Jareth brushed the soaking hair out of her eyes as he leant in and kissed her. Sarah Williams wrapped her arms around his neck as she lived every teenaged girls fantasy. To be kissed in the rain by a handsome stranger who was her knight in shining amour. But he wasn't a knight… he was a king.


	4. I Feel like Pancakes

Sarah awoke the next morning seeing stars

Sarah awoke the next morning seeing stars. At first she had doubts about whether or not last night actually happened. Did she really defeat the Labyrinth and save Toby? Did she really dance in the rain with the man who took her brother away? Did she really confess her love to said man and kiss him passionately under the stars? Suddenly a glimmer of light caught her eye. It wasn't until she saw the sparkling emerald on her finger that she realized it was real. Last night DID happen and she WAS madly in love. Other girls her age would never understand the true meaning of the word but it felt so right.

She lifted her finger up and admired it against the light that was streaming in through her window. She almost didn't see the time on her clock. It read 7:45. Sarah breathed a sigh of relief.

'_Thank god it's the weekend'_ she thought to herself. Finally deciding to get up, Sarah threw on her dressing gown. Grabbing a near-by hair tie, she pulled her hair into a messy ponytail. After a quick thought, Sarah turned the ring so that the emerald wasn't showing. "Better no have them asking questions at the moment," she said to herself. With one last look in the mirror she made her way downstairs.

When she got there she saw Karen at the Kitchen table with Toby in his highchair.

"Good Morning" said Karen.

"Morning" replied Sarah.

"Morning kiddo" said Sarah kissing Toby on the head.

"Where's dad?" she asked.

"Oh he was called into work early." answered Karen.

"Karen there's something I gotta talk to you about." Sarah said as she pulled up a chair.

"What is it Sarah?" asked a now worried Karen.

"Well I've been doing a lot of thinking lately and I know that I haven't always treated you well" stated Sarah.

"Oh honey I know that having me as a step mom isn't the same as having your mom here but…" Karen started.

"That's the thing…you've been nothing but nice to me and I've just shut you out when you have been more of a mother to me than Linda ever was. So i'm sorry…for every thing. Especially last night." finished Sarah. Karen got up and walked over to her and pulled Sarah into a tight hug.

"You know what I feel like pancakes" said Karen.

"I'll make them." offered Sarah.

Now that she had made up with Karen, her life was gonna get a whole lot better.


	5. AN:

Hello there my fellow readers.

At the moment I am in desperate need of your help. I cam currently suffering for severe writers block with this story, that's why I haven't updated for a staggering 8 months!

I would like to know what you wanna see happen.

Should Jareth and Sarah see each other before their 8 years is up? if so how?

Will Toby find out about that night?

WHAT DO YOU WANT….I AM REALLY STUCK

ANY suggestions will be so appreciated….after all its you who I write these stories for.

Waiting for your help

ML17


	6. Finger Paintings

**A/N: OMG Hi everyone! it has been soooooooooo long since i have updated this story. But honestly, i have had so much trouble comming up with ideas and putting them down... but i have some sort of idea...BUT I STILL NEED A LOT OF HELP! so please Read and Review and let me know what you think...no flames please. so, Enjoy**

Sarah was leaning against the fence outside of the preschool, waiting for her little brother. She held a flyer in her hands and was looking at it carefully.

"Sarah!"

Sarah turned around and saw a small boy running towards her at full speed. She folded the paper in hald and shoved it her pocket, reminding herself to look it again later on, and opened her arms and caught Toby and spun him into a hug.

"hey Kiddo, have fun?" she asked. Toby nodded his head. Sarah grabbed his backpack and took her brother's hand as they began to walk home.

"We made finger paintings." Toby said excitedly, swinging their hands back and forth.

"really?" Sarah asked.

"Yeah, they're in there." Toby said, pointing to his backpack. "I'll show you when we get home. Is mommy and daddy home?"

"I'm afraid not, honey. Just gonna be you and me tonight. But they'll be home when you wake up in the morning." Sarah said.

"That's ok! Can we do some cooking?" Toby asked sweetly, running up the front steps. Sarah smiled and nodded.

"Of course we can." She said, opening the door. Toby ran inside to go wash up and Sarah went to the kitchen to get ready to cook. She took the drink bottle out of his backpack and rinsed it out. Toby came bouncing into the room and sat up on a stool as Sarah pulled out some folded pieces of paper.

"These your paintings?" Sarah asked.

"Yep!" Toby said smiling. Sarah smiled back and unfolded the pictures.

Sarah couldn't believe her eyes. The picture that her brother had painted was from a year ago. Back in the Escher room. There was a small baby in red and white, sitting on the stairs, a young girl in white looking as if she's running…and a tall man with wild hair, juggling a crystal.

"Honey, how did you come up with this?" Sarah asked. Toby's face fell.

"you don't like it?" he asked.

"no! No, I love it! It's really good. I was just wondering, why you painted this?" she asked. the three year old shrugged.

"I don't know. I had a dream the other night about it." He said.

"what kind of dream? Was it scary?" Sarah asked, kind of afraid of what he was going to say.

"No. There was this man," Toby said. "He was really nice to me, he kept talking about you…but I don't know who he is." Sarah's mind was racing. Somehow, Toby remembered that night. He remembered Sarah looking for him in the Escher room. Most of all…he remembered Jareth.

"Sarah?" Toby asked, bringing her back from of her thoughts.

"yeah?"

"can we do some cooking now?" Toby asked. "I've washed up and everything!" Sarah smiled.

"how does chocolate chip cookies sound?" she asked. Toby's smile brightened and they set to work.

oOoOoOoOo

"G get dressed and ready for bed ok?" Sarah said, helping him dry off after his bath. The little boy nodded and ran off to his room. Sarah smiled to herself and headed downstairs to the kitchen.

She flipped the switch on the kettle and waited for the water to boil to make her coffee. The kitchen window was open, allowing a cool breeze in the house. the sounds of the trees swaying outside, Sarah heard another sound. She looked over to the window, and could have sworn that she saw a glimpse of white.

Sarah smiled once again and carefully carried her mug of coffee upstairs. She found Toby sitting upright in bed waiting for her.

"Sarah?"

"Yes Toby?" Sarah replied as she tucked her little brother into his bed.

"Can you tell me a story?" he asked sweetly. Sarah smiled and nodded.

"What story?" she wondered, although, she knew she never really needed to ask.

"The one about the goblins." Toby smiled.

"Do you want the window closed?" Sarah asked.

"No…I like it open." Toby said. Sarah grinned as she sat down on the bed next to him, she too liked to keep it open…for different reasons.

Toby grabbed Lancelot and snuggled closer to his sister as she began to tell the story they both loved…with a slight change in the ending of course.

"'I will wait until your 23rd birthday…you will defiantly be considered an adult in your world by then. If by then you still wish to marry me'. The goblin king told her. The girl agreed and a beautiful emerald ring appeared on her finger." Sarah said.

"Just like yours." Toby said.

"Yes Toby. Just like mine." Sarah smiled, running her fingertip over her ring.

"Sarah?"

"yes?"

"do you think she'll marry the goblin king?" Toby asked.

"who?" Sarah asked.

"the girl in the story." Toby said. Sarah smiled and kissed her beloved little brother's head.

"I hope so." She said.

"I hope so too." Toby smiled.

"Ok, munchkin. Time for bed." Sarah said. Toby scooted down the bed and pulled the covers up.

"Night Sarah." He said.

"Goodnight, Toby. I love you." She said.

"love you too." Toby said sleepily, turning over and closing his eyes. Sarah switched off the light and left the room, closing the door halfway.

She failed to see the snow white owl flay away, after sitting by the window listening in on the story he knew all too well.


	7. Surprise Visitor

**A/N: OMG I'm back from the dead. No but seriously, I am soo sorry that I don;t update this story sooner. I still can't get any ideas or inspiration. If you have any ideas, please let me know, bacause I should be updating this more often. Also, check out the other A/N at the end of this chapter. ENJOY!**

Sarah sat at her desk studying the flyer in her hand. The bulliten boards at her school were always full of different kinds of notices and information, but she never really paid much attention, until she found this one, that is.

_'Drama Camp. Perfect your dramatic talents is stage performing, script writing ....blah blah blah'_

Ever since she was little, Sarah had dreamed of being an actress, and spending all those afternoons in ther park, reciting lines from a particular book certainly fuelled her desire for that life. She was brought out of her thoughts by a familiar voice.

"Sarah?"

Sarah turned around to her mirror and saw Hoggle looking back at her. A faint smile on his face.

"Hoggle!" she said, darting from her desk chair and over to her vanity. The dwarf couldn't help but chuckle at his friend's enthusiasm.

"Careful there Sarah, you don' wan ta be u'rtin y'self." Hoggle said. Sarah smiled and steadied herself before sitting down in front of her mirror.

"It's so good to see you! What are you doing here? How is everyone? Sir Didymus? and Ludo?" she asked.

"Fine. They're all fine." Hoggle said. "They all have their duties 'round the castle."

"And how is he?" Sarah asked. Hoggle shook his head, knowing who she was refferring to.

"He's fine too. Turning the place upside down, an all." he said. Sarah raised her eyebrow.

"Upside down?" she wondered. Hoggle nodded.

"Jareth's taken the liberty of transforming the castle and the city into the perfect kingdom for when you come." he told her. Sarah laughed.

"But I'm not going to be there for another seven years or so." she said.

"I know that. But have you seen the size of tha' place?" Hoggle asked. Sarah sighed and nodded.

"He's even considering getting rid of the bog." Hoggle said with such happiness, Sarah couldn't help but laugh. They talked a little while longer, telling each other about what has happened in both worlds over the last year. A little while later, they could hear the sounds of the gravel in the drive, crunching underneath tyres, telling Sarah that her parents were now home.

"I've gotta go. It was so good seeing you, Hoggle." Sarah said.

"You too, Sarah. And don't leave it so long next time." he warned. Sarah laughed and nodded. With one last wave, Hoggle vanished from sight. Sarah sighed to herself. She missed seeing her friends fom the underground, especially Jareth. Shaking the sad thoughts from her head, she grabbed the camp flyer and left the room.

Quietly, she checked on Toby. Carefully opening the door wider, Sarah could see that he was fast asleep in his bed, with Lancelot tucked safely under his arm. She smiled to herself, and shut the door once again before heading down the stairs. Her parents came through the door as Sarah reached the bottom step.

"Did you guys have a good night?" Sarah asked.

"It was great. The movie was wonderful." Karen said, slipping her coat off and putting it on the coat rack by the door.

"How was Toby?" Richard wondered.

"Fine, as usual. We made some cookies this afternoon when I picked him up. He's been asleep for a couple of hours now." Sarah said.

"Thanks again, Sarah for watching him." Karen said. Sarah smiled.

"It's no problem. We have fun." she said. It was then she remembered the flyer in her hand. "Oh, there was something that I wanted to talk to you about."

She walked over and handed the flyer to her father. Richard took a good look at it before showing it to Karen.

"It sounds perfect for you." Karen said happily. "When is it?"

"In a couple of months. It runs for two weeks then afterwards they keep inviting you back if you want to go." Sarah explained.

"I think it's a wonderful idea." Richard said. "It's getting late though, how about we talk it over more in the morning?"

Sarah nodded and said goodnight to her parents before going back upstairs. She walked over to her closet and pulled out her Pyjamas, consisting of an old t-shirt and an old pair of sweat pants. After getting changed in the bathroom, Sarah brushed her teeth and did her hair, pulling it into a messy bun before heading back to her room.

After she pulled back the covers on her bed, Sarah walked over to her window and had a look out at the night sky. It really was a beautiful night and the stars were shining. It was then that she had an idea. She walked over to her shelves, where she kept some of her most precious things and pulled out a beautiful music player. It looked so similar to how she looked when she was dancing with Jareth in the ballroom.

After giving the key a couple of twists, a beautiful and haunting tune begain to play. Sarah smiled to herself as she placed it on her bedside table and hoped into bed. As she snuggled down under the covers, Sarah looked over at her bedisde table, where the music player a couple of books, and a small crystal sat. Smiling to herself, she closed her eyes.

"Goodnight Jareth." she said tiredly. She fell asleep before she could hear a hoot coming from outside, answering her goodnight wish.

**A/N: So there we go. Another chapter, finally. Please let me know if you want me to go to Sarah at camp, or skip a couple of years ahead. I really do need some ideas for this, otherwise, I might give up on it, and I really dont want to do that, because I have an idea for a seuqel....i just have to know how to get to it. lol So please help would be much appreciated. I might also Include some people in this story if they want me to, if they review and give ideas and such. I think we need a few more characters. ****Also, please check out the poll I have on my profile, giving ideas about what story I should start when a few more have been completed.**


	8. I'd Blame Goblins

**A/N: Yay another update! :P thanks to everyone who gave me suggestions and help for this story, I really appreciate it. But keep it coming, the only reason this story has made it this far is because of you.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth, or any of it's characters. Also, I don't own LeAnn, she's a real person and owns herself, and I thank her for allowing me to include her in the story (I apologise in advance, I found it difficult to write about another person. So I'm sorry if the character is a little off :P). I do, however, own Eric and Hannah (she's based on my psychotic friend Niff)**

Sighing to herself, Sarah grabbed the handles of her bag and pulled with every ounce of strength she had, but it wouldn't budge. Of course the bus driver had to place them all in the most ridiculous positions when he loaded the bus.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd blame goblins." Sarah muttered to herself, giving the bag another forceful tug.

"Need a hand?" a voice behind her asked. Sarah, brushed her long brown hair out of her eyes and turned around and saw a young man standing behind her. She sent him a thankful look.

"Please." she said. "Although I'm starting to believe it's imposible." The stranger laughed and stepped forward, taking the handles out Sarah's hands. If took a few small movements, but finally, the bag was freed.

"Here you go." he said.

"Thanks." Sarah smiled. It was then she got a good look at him. He had lightly tanned skin, big brown eyes and dark hair that was sticking up all over the place. Not to mention the smile that seemed to be stuck on his face.

"Don't worry, there's a trick to it. I don't think that goblins would be smart enough." he laughed. Sarah smiled, but mentally cringed at the thought of him talking to herself.

"I meant my little brother, he's six. He helped load it on the bus." Sarah explained. It wasn't a lie. Toby wanted to help Sarah get ready for camp, so he helped back her bag, and he carried it from the car over to the bus...with her help of course.

"First year?" the young man wondered, pulling Sarah out of her thoughts. She noticed that he had picked up both his bag and her own. Sarah shook her head.

"Third." she replied.

"Damn, and I thought I wouldn't be the only one." he laughed. Sarah found it quite contageous, and couldn't help laughing herself.

"Don't worry, there's at least twelve newbies every year." she said. She hadn't realized it, but they had already reached the campsite. The young man put Sarah's bag on the ground and turned to face her.

"I'm Eric, by the way." he said, holding out his hand for her.

"Sarah." she smiled, shaking his hand.

"Well Sarah, I guess I gotta go register. I'll see you later then?" Eric wondered. Sarah nodded. Eric grabbed his bag off the ground. He waved at her before heading over to the regestration table.

"SARAH!"

A voice behind her screamed. Sarah turned around and was almost tackled to the ground by a blonde blurr.

"Oh my god! It's so good to see you! How have you been? How's Toby? Oh my god I love your jacket!" All the questions were coming at once.

"Hannah, settle down. I need to breathe." Sarah said. Hannah instantly let go. Sarah laughed to herself. Hannah was still the same bubbly, bouncy blonde that she met on her frist day of camp three years ago.

Before camp, if you had put the two of them into a room and told Sarah that they were going to be friends, she would have laughed in your face and told you you were crazy. They couldn't be more different.

Even at 18, Sarah was still quiet, although not as much as in her younger teens. She still wasn't the popular one in school and still preferred to keep to herself at times and was sensible about most things.

Hannah on the other hand, was the queen bee, at her school. She was pretty and loved to go out and have fun on weekends and everyone loved her. But she was also very kind, and befriended anyone and everyone she met.

"You know, some help would have been nice." Sarah called over Hannah's shoulder. Their friend, LeAnn stood to the sighed, laughing at the display before her.

"No way, I had enough trouble when I got here. It's fun to watch someone else." she laughed. Sarah rolled her eyes and walked over to hug her friend.

Hannah often called LeAnn the mother hen, of the group. She was kind of in the middle of the three, she knew how to have a good time, but she also knew a serious moment if there ever was one. LeAnn was a gifted writer. She could write anything from stories to screenplays and poetry, and often brought the others to tears with some of her work.

"Guess who you're rooming with this year?" Hannah wondered excitedly. Sarah laughed to herself. She didn't need to guess, it had been the same for the last three years.

"Hmm... could it be that really good looking Irish guy we met last year?" Sarah wondered. Hannah rolled her eyes.

"Haha." she said, finally catching on to the joke.

"Of course it's us." LeAnn said. "They'd be stupid not to room us together."

The three grabbed they stuff and walked over to their cabin. LeAnn was right, the staff knew that none of them would be happy unless they were in a room together. Besides, Hannah would probably throw a fit until they changed it. Their cabin was perfect for them. It had a bunk bed and a single by the window, as well as a small couch. It also had a perfect view of the lake from the window. Outside, there was a table and chair, and they were lucky enough to have the swingseat right by their cabin.

They had the rest of the afternoon to do what they wanted, get unpacked and catch up with friends before they had to meet for dinner then the traditional campfire later that night. The three girls unpacked, and talked about everything that happened since they last saw each other. Sarah, who once again claimed the single bed before the others, had finished unpacking, grabbed a book and went outside to sit on the swingseat.

"I see you've finished unpacking." a familiar voice said. Sarah looked up and smiled.

"Yeah. Although, if it wasn't for you, I'd still be trying to get my luggage out of the bus." she said. She moved her legs so that Eric could have a spot to sit. "Sit down if you want." Eric smiled and accepted the invitation.

"What are you reading?" He wondered. Sarah just picked up the first book she found in her bag, she didn't even have time to see what it was. She smiled and held up the book for him to see.

"Labyrinth." he read aloud. "Never heard of it."

"Not many people have." Sarah smiled, finding it interesting that it was that particular book she grabbed.

"What's it about?" Eric wondered, generally interested in the small read book.

"Oh, well. A young girl wishes her little brother away, and the Goblin king takes him away to the castle beyond the goblin city."

"Really?" Eric asked. Sarah nodded.

"Yeah. So she has to run the Labyrinth to get her brother back before the Goblin King turns him into one of them forever." she explained.

"Sounds pretty cool." Eric said. "That Goblin King sounds like a pretty nasty villian."

"He's not really a villian...He's just playing the part." Sarah said, before she even realized. Eric looked at her questioningly. "That's just my view." Sarah added, quickly trying to cover up her mistake.

"Right." Eric said.

"Sarah! What are you...oh. I didn't realize." Hannah's voice said. Both Sarah and Eric looked around and saw both Hannah and LeAnn sticking their heads out of the doorway. Sarah smiled and shook her head. Eric laughed and waved to the girls.

"How's it going?" he asked. The girls smiled and waved back.

"Great...we'll just get back inside." LeAnne said, dragging Hannah back into the cabin by her shoulder. Sarah sighed.

"Friends of yours?" Eric joked. Sarah nodded.

"Unfortunately." she joked. They sat and talked for a while before Eric had to head back to his cabin.

"Well, i gotta go. I'll see you at the bonfire later, right?" he wondered. Sarah smiled and nodded.

"Yeah." she said. Eric smiled and waved before heading back to his cabin. Sarah couldn't wipe the smile of her face as she walked back to the cabin.

"Sarah Williams! Spill everything!" Hannah squealed, dragging her over to the couch.

"There's nothing to spill." Sarah said. Both Hannah and LeAnn rolled their eyes. Sarah sighed and told them about how she met him.

"Sounds like this guy might be into you." Hannah smiled.

"But wait, what about the other one?" LeAnn said, nodding towards Sarah's ring. "You know, Mr. Sweep me off my feet, Prince Charming?" Sarah told her friends about Jareth a little while after they met. Although she left out the fact that he was the Fae ruler of the Goblin City in the Underground, and their life was basically a plot out of her favourite book.

"But you haven't seen him in, how long exactly?" Hannah wondered.

"About two and a half years." Sarah said sadly. "I don't get to see him often. The last thing I heard about him was a present for my birthday this year." She remembered it well. She had her friends from the underground visit her...but not Jareth. Although, she did find a present from him at the end of the party.

"What are you going to do? I mean, you're practically engaged to the guy." LeAnn said.

"Come on guys. I mean, I barely know Eric. I'm not just going to suddenly up and leave Jareth...am I?" Sarah wondered.

"No, of course not." Hannah said. "Especially since he gives you such gorgeous jewlery." she joked, taking Sarah's hand and admiring her ring. She had stopped hiding it since last year. When her parents asked her about it, she simply said that she met a guy at camp.

"Come on, we gotta get down for dinner." LeAnn said. Sarah wondered where the time had gone. But true enough, it was already seven o'clock. They grabbed their coats and walked down to the dining hall for dinner.

"Hey, look up there!" LeAnn saidm pointing up to the tree above them. Sarah and Hannah looked up and saw their friend pointing to a beautiful snow white owl.

"I've never seen one out this early in a long time." Hannah said. Sarah smiled to herself as they kept walking.

oOoOoOoOoOo

"Did either of you get a look at that new guy?" Hannah wondered as the three of them walked down to the campfire site.

"You ditz, we've already met Eric." LeAnn laughed. Hannah scowled at her friends.

"Not Eric, the other one." Hannah said. "Hello gorgeous. I mean his hair, and his eyes! I've never seen anything like them..."

Sarah lost interest in the conversation after that. All she could think about was Jareth. It had been so long since she had seen him. He often sent her gifts and notes with a crystal, and she loved it. But it just wasn't the same as seeing him there in person, and having him hold her in his arms.

The three arrived at the campsite finally. Hannah was still talking about that boy when they sat down. As ususal, The camp leaders started the campfire by welcoming everyone to the camp, followed by introductions and a brief run through of what the two weeks would consist of.

Sarah sat down beside Hannah and held out her hands. The fire felt warm against her palms in a desperate bid to keep away from the bitter cold. Pretty soon, once the leaders had finished talking, they started telling stories and songs around the fire. Hannah handed Sarah the bag of marshmellows that were being passed around. She was listening in to what her blonde friend was saying when she felt something being thrown at her. She looked at her feet and saw a marshmellow resting by her sneakers. Curious as to how it got there, Sarah looked up and found Eric smiling a her.

_Hi. _He mouthed to her. Sarah smiled back at him.

_Hi._

_Wanna go for a walk?_ He asked.

Sarah thought about it for a minute. Everyone else was so preoccupied with one thing or another that they would never notice that the two were gone. Silentle, Sarah nodded her head. Eric smiled and got up from his stop around the campfire. Sarah looked at her friends, who were too involved in the conversation about the 'other new guy' to even acknowledge Sarah's existance. She smiled to herself and got up and followed Eric.

**A/N: Yay. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. I was struggling with ideas when I was typing this, but I hope it was to your liking. So, what do we think of the new characters? What do you think should happen next? Please REVIEW and let me know your thoughts and ideas, please please please! Also, I'm gonna post a picture of Sarah's ring and also a picture of Eric, so keep checking my Profile for them. They will be under my story links under 'STRANGERS TILL NOW' [Duh, right?]**

**I'll try my best to update soon. But that all depends on how well I catch up on my homework (damn me breaking my leg) and what ideas and such I get to help the story along.**


	9. Lakeside stroll

**A/N: Hey all. Sorry I haven't updated for a while, but I've been so busy lately. I had my birthday a couple of weeks ago, and now we're finally moving into our new house in a couple of days so I've been packing and school on top of all that....oh well.**

**This chapter didn't turn out as well as I had hoped, but I kind of have an idea where I want to go with this now, so yeah. But please REVIEW and let mek now what you think and suggestions are still most welcome. Enjoy!**

The campsite wasn't that far from the lake, so Sarah and Eric started walking down there. Now that they were away from the hordes of people and the bright flames of the campfire, Sarah finally noticed what a beautiful night it was. The moon was full and shining above the lake, casting a reflection on its surface and making the water sparkle, as if a million stars were floating gently on the water's surface. Of course, the first thing Sarah thought after that was Jareth, and the excessive amount of glitter he used. She made a mental note to talk to him about that...when she saw him.

"So, " Eric said, trying to break the silence between them. "Tell me more about yourself, Sarah."

"There's not much to tell really." Sarah said. "I'm not a very exciting person."

"I find that very hard to believe." Eric said. Sarah smiled at him. The night air had finally started to set in now that they were moving further away. Sarah shivered and rubbed her arms absentmindedly, trying to shield her body from the cold. Eric saw her and shrugged his jacket off, wrapping it around her shoulders.

"Thanks. But won't you get cold?" Sarah wondered. Eric shook his head.

"Nah, I don't feel the cold so much." he said. "Now come on, you gotta talk now."

"Well, I live with my family; my dad and stepmom and my little brother Toby." Sarah started. She really did miss her family when she was away at camp. She remembered the first time she left. Poor Toby was only three and didn't want her to go. But as he got older, he realized that she wasn't gone for that long, and would love the new stories she would tell him when she came back.

"Oh, the little goblin, right?" Eric joked. Sarah laughed and nodded, remembering their discussion that afternoon.

"Yeah, that's him." she said. "I love to act and read. I'm a pretty good cook. Well, Toby thinks so anyway. That's pretty much it." Eric nodded his head in understanding.

"If you don't mind my asking, what happened to your mom?" he asked.

"What?" Sarah asked.

"You mentioned that you live with your stepmom...you don't have to answer if you don't want to. I'm sorry if I'm overstepping or something." Sarah sighed and shook her head. It had been years since she thought about her birth mother. But that's all that Linda was, her bith mother only. Karen was her mother now.

"No, it's okay. Linda, my mother, left when I saw little." Sarah said. "I consider Karen to be my mom. She's been more like a mother than Linda ever was."

"Ah, you're lucky." Eric said. "Most kids put up with the whole 'wicked stepmother' kind of thing."

"Believe it or not, it was like that in the beginning." Sarah admitted.

"Really?" Eric wondered. Sarah nodded.

"Yeah, we never got along in the beginning. But now I love her more than anything." she said. She had no idea why she was telling him all of this. But she just felt so comfortable around him.

"Alright, I've retold my entire life story." she said. "Time for you to spill."

"Me? Oh well, I live with my Dad. My mom died when I was seven." Eric said.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Sarah said.

"It's okay. She got really sick. But I'm glad she's not hurting anymore. I still remember her, and I talk to her sometimes. If I'm scared or something...sorry, that sounds kinda werid, doesn't it?" Eric said. But Sarah shook her head.

"No, not at all." she said. Eric smiled at her as he thought of what else to tell her.

"Uhh.. I love to act...hence why I'm here. I do martial arts...uhh... I can't cook to save myself." Eric laughed.

"Really?" Sarah asked. Eric nodded.

"Yeah, I burn cornflakes." he joked. The two laughed and got to know each other more as they walked along the lake.

"So, tell me more about Toby. He sounds like a pretty cool kid." Eric said. Sarah smiled and nodded. She reached inside her pocket and pulled out a photo that she kept on her at all times. It was taken outside their house earlier that summer. She and Toby sat on their front porch, her arms wrapped protectively around him as he sat on her lap, laughing and waving to the camera. Merlin was by their side, resting his head on Toby's knee She grinned at the memory and handed the photo to Eric.

"Nice." he smiled. "Like I said, he seems like a cool kid."

"Yeah, he is. He's like my best friend." Sarah said, taking back the picture and putting it back into her pocket. They made it down to the tiny pier that was by the lake. They walked to the end and sat down, dangling their feet just about the water's surface. In the background, they could still hear the faint sounds of voices back at the campsite. Usually by now, they would be telling ghost stories and singing songs with one of the counselors playing the guitar terribly.

Sarah sighed whistfully and looked up at the moon above them. It seems to make the entire night sky light up with a beautiful, luminous glow. The water was still and unmoving below them, shining like the millions of stars that were in the sky. She leaned back, resting her hands behind her for support.

She closed her eyes as she felt the wind on her cheeks, until suddenly, she was brought out of her thoughts when something touched her hand. Opening her eye, Sarah looked down and saw that Eric's hand and merely brushed against hers. She looked up and noticed that he too was looking at their hands, only just realizing what had happened. He looked up, and his eyes met hers.

"Oh, sorry." he said. Sarah shook her head.

"It's fine...no harm done." she said, laighing slightly to try and lift the awkwardness from the air. She couldn't help but continue to look into his eyes. As stranged as it felt to her, she felt as if she couldn't look away. Eric nodded head as Sarah finally managed to turn her attention back to the night sky.

"It really is beautiful." she said, looking at the moon. But Eric's attention was nowhere near the moon.

"Yeah...beautiful." he said, still not able to look away from her. Sarah turned to face him, realizing what he had just said, and blushed. It was only then that both of them realized how close they were. Slowly, Eric leaned in closer to her, closing the distance between them. He gently placed a light kiss on her lips.

He pulled back after a moment, afraid of what her reaction would be. But Sarah said nothing, still in complete shock. So, daringly, Eric leaned in, pressing his lips to hers once again. Only this time, the kiss was a little different. Eric's arm snaked around her waist, bringing her closer to him. Sarah felt his tongue tracing along her bottom lip, begging her for entrance. Definately not in the right state of mind, Sarah agreed as Eric deepened their kiss.

Suddenly, a loud hooting noise was heard in the trees behind them, and Sarah jumped away from him.

"Sorry...I...I can't." she said.

"Sarah, it was only an owl." Eric said, trying not to laugh. Sarah shook her head.

"No...I mean, I can't." she said, looking down and playing with her ring. Eric looked confused and followed her gaze to the ring on her finger.

"Oh...there's already someone else." he said, piecing it all together.

"No...I mean yes...it's complicated." Sarah said. Eric nodded and sighed.

"He's a lucky guy." he said. Sarah sent him a sympathetic look.

"Eric I..." but he held up his hand to stop her.

"Don't apologize, Sarah." he said. "I shouldn't have done it. But, I hope this doesn't stop us being friends?"

"Of course not." Sarah said. The two sat in silence for a moment or two, when Sarah realized that it was getting late and they probably should get back.

"I should go." she said sadly. "I'll see you later?" Eric nodded his head. Sarah sent him a sympathetic smile before she got up and ran back to the camp site. Everyone had already gone to bed when she returned. Silently, she crept into her cabin and found Hannah and LeAnn already asleep. Sarah quietly got changed and climbed into bed.

"I would ask you where you've been all night...but I'm much too tired." Hannah said sleepily. Sarah grinned to herself as she turned over to go to sleep. But no matter how she tried, she couldn't stop thinking about what had happened.


	10. Almost Paradise

**A/N: Hey everyone. Just a quick note here. Thankyou to everyone who has reviewed and left me suggestions for the story...you guys are amazing. Please don't stop now...i need more ideas than ever after this.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth or any of it's characters. I do, however, own Hannah, Eric, Evan and James. LeAnn owns herself and everything else belongs to the brilliant mind of the late great Jim Henson. I also don't own the song Almost Paradise from Footloose. Enjoy the chapter!**

Sunlight came streaming in through Sarah's window the next morning. At first, she didn't want to get out of bed. She didn't realize how late she got back the night before. She also didn't realize how tired she was. The last thing she remembered was Hannah talking to her for about a split-second before they both fell asleep. Sarah turned over and was determined to go back to sleep, but she knew she couldn't.

She scanned the room for any sign that her roommates were still there, but she found nothing. Unlike her, they were up early every morning. They couldn't understand why Sarah loved to sleep in so late, instead of waking up early and starting th day. Truth be told, Sarah wasn't so sure either. Maybe it was because of her dreams. She often dreamed that she was back underground, without having a time limit of any sort. She would be back with her friends...back with him.

Sighing to herself, Sarah knew that there was no point in her staying in bed now. She threw back the covers and slowly got out of bed. After searching through her bag and grabbing whatever clothes she coould find, Sarah slipped into her jeans and her special blue T-shirt.

After their first year at Camp, Sarah, Hannah and LeAnn had special shirts made by Hannah's uncle who had a printing company. Each one had a different colour shirt; Sarah had blue, Hannah had pink and LeAnn had green with each saying 'Drama Queens' on the front.

The three loved them so much, that the following year as a Christmas present, Hannah's uncle gave them Jackets with the name on the back and their names on the front. Hannah often said that it was their version of the Pink Ladies Jackets from Grease.

After pulling her hair into a messy ponytail, Sarah headed out to the dining hall for breakfast. When she got there, she found a big group of people huddled over at a table. But Sarah shrugged it off and walked over to the table where Hannah and LeAnn were talking. She sighed to herself and sat down, resting her head on the table.

"Nice of you to finally join us." Hannah said, scooping another spoonful of cereal into her mouth. Sarah mumbled in response.

"Late night?" LeAnn joked, causing both Hannah and herself to laugh. Sarah slowly lifted her head and glared at her friends, which only made them laugh harder. LeAnn shook her head and threw a dry piece of toast at her.

"Nice shirt by the way." Hannah noted. Sarah smiled and took a bite out of her toast, finally waking up more.

"I'm considering the fact that we should get hats too." she said. She looked over Hannah's shoulder at the crowded table. "What's going on over there?" she asked. The other two looked over their shoulders then back at their table.

"New guy." LeAnn said. Sarah nodded her head.

"Oh, the one with the amazing eyes?" she wondered, imitating Hannah's perky blondeness. Hannah scowled but nodded.

"Oh, are we talking about the new guy?" a bright and cheery voice said suddenly. The girls looked up as a boy with messy blonde hair sat down beside Sarah.

"Morning Evan." the three chorused.

"Morning darlings." Evan said brightly. Sarah rolled her eyes. How anyone could be so bright in the mornings was beyond her. The girls met Evan their first year of camp. As usual, Hannah thought he was the most gorgeous thing to ever grace the planet, and repeatedly tried flirting with him non-stop. She only stopped when he overheard their conversation about some guy in a magazine. Now, he was just one of the girls.

"So, has little miss over here met him yet?" Evan wondered, nodding towards Sarah. Sarah shook her head..

"Nope, just listening to Hannah drone on and on..." she said.

"Yeah...kinda like she did when we met you." LeAnn laughed. Hannah scowled again and threw a piece of toast at her friend.

"You guys are unbelievable. I make one mistake and you guys never let me forget it." she said.

"Nope." both Sarah and LeAnn said, shaking their heads. Evan laughed and turned to the petite blonde.

"Don't worry, honey." he said comfortingly. "It's not my fault that I'm extremely good looking."

"And very, very, gay." Sarah added.

"Anyways...what were you saying about the new guy?" Evan asked. Hannah's look of annoyance instantly turned into one of joy at the thought of talking about the mysterious new guy.

"His eyes. I swear to God," Hannah said. "I have never seen anything like them." Sarah shook her head and continued eating her breakfast.

"...they were totally mismatched." she said. Sarah's head picked up straight away.

"What was that?" she asked.

"His eyes. One green and one blue." Hannah said. "Completely mismatched, but they were incredible." Sarah thought about it. She only knew of one person with eyes like that. But it couldn't be. Sarah shrugged it off, thinking it merely a coincidence. Just then, she looked across the hall and saw Eric, walking to his seat.

He gave her a small wave and a brief smile, which she returned before she focusing on her breakfast. Although, it was not something that went unnoticed by her friends.

"Okay, what the hell happened last night?" Hannah asked, shoving her cereal bowl out of the way and crossing her arms on the table, determined to get something out of her.

"Nothing." Sarah said.

"You, Sarah Williams, are a terrible liar." LeAnn said. Sarah sighed.

"Why do you both have to gang up on me, huh?" she asked, throwing the crust of her toast at them.

"Because we're your friends...it's in the job description." Evan said. "Now spill."

"Nothing happened." Sarah said again.

"Swear on Toby's life?" Hannah said.

"What?!" Sarah wondered. Hannah grinned victoriously.

"Go on. If nothing happened, swear it." she said. Sarah sighed in annoyance.

"You're evil." she said. Hannah shrugged and concentrated on Sarah's face.

"What are you doing?" LeAnn wondered.

"It's obvious she's not gonna tell us...I'm gonna figure it out by reading her face." Hanna said. LeAnn and Evan looked at each other and laughed.

"Right, good luck with that, Han." she said. Hannah stuck her tongue out at her friends and, after a few moments of concentration, she gasped.

"Oh my god...He kissed you!" she said. Both Sarah and LeAnn looked at her in shock.

"How the hell did you get that from looking at my face?" asked Sarah.

"I'm good at reading people." Hannah shrugged. "Spill it!"

"Not here." Sarah said. The other three nodded and they got up and left the dining hall. As soon as they were out the door, the other three attacked their friend.

"Alright, keep talking." LeAnn said. Sarah sighed and looked to her feet before she told them everything. After walking around for a little while, they went back to the girls' room to grab their things for their first class.

"So, what are you going to do?" Hannah asked. Evan sat on the end of her bed, while the three got ready for class.

"What do you mean?" Sarah wondered, searching through her belongings for her book.

"What do you mean 'what do I mean'?" Hannah asked. "Sarah, you meet this gorgeous guy yesterday, and it's obvious that he has a thing for you. You two go on a midnight stroll along the pier last night...and he kissed you!"

"I know! I have no idea what to do. I mean, I pulled away when I realized what was happening...but at the same time, I wasn't pulling away sooner." Sarah said.

"But he kissed you Sarah. Besides, you're in love with Jareth, right?" LeAnn asked.

"Of course I do." Sarah said.

"Exactly...It's not like you cheated on him or something." LeAnn said. Sarah sighed and nodded as she pulled her book out of her suitcase.

"Come on, we better go." She said. The other two girls grabbed their things and left the cabin, closing the door behind them.

"By the way," Evan said. "When do we get to meet your handsome prince?"

"I don't know." Sarah admitted. Evan rolled his eyes.

"Come on Sarah. This guy is obviously something special. He's waltzed right in and has swept you off your feet. You know you need our aproval." he joked.

"Don't worry about it." LeAnn said. "If this guy is worth it, he'll show his face soon enough."

The four walked down to the campsite where a group of people were waiting for the counselor to arrive. Sitting on one of the logs, and looking rather impatient, was James Cooper; the resident badboy of the camp. He was known to others as being a tough guy because of the way people saw him. He wore leather a jacket, smoked behind the bleachers at school, and his favourite mode of transportation was his beloved motorcycle, earning him the nickname, James Dean.

But what very few people, and even fewer outside the camp, was that James didn't quite fit into his so-called stereotype. In fact, he was the complete opposite. He was a complete gentleman, would do anything for his friends, and was one hell of a singer. Oh, and another thing...he was also Hannah's boyfriend of two and a half years.

At first you would think that the two of them would never be seen with each other. Both were so different. Hannah being the perky blonde head cheerleader, who was no doubt going to be Prom Queen and had a habit of squealing a lot. And James being the tough as nails guy from the wrong side of the tracks. He rode a motorcycle, smoked and a general bad boy. But if you knew them well enough, or just saw the two together, you could see that the love that they had for each other was stronger than anything.

"About time you lot showed up!" James called out as he saw the four making their way towards him. He got up and waited as the others reached him. Hannah rolled her eyes.

"Blame this one here." she said, nodding to Sarah. "Her fault for staying out all night." She walked over and stood next to her boyfriend, who wrapped his arm loosley around her shoulders.

"Oh, is that when she disappeared at the fire last night?" James wondered. Sarah sighed.

"Is there any chance of you all butting out of my life?" She wondered. The other four looked at each other.

"No." They said in unison.

"Well...can you please stop talking about me as if I'm not here?" Sarah wondered.

"No." They all burst out laughing. Finally, the counselor arrived and their class could begin.

oOoOoOoOoOo

When class was over, the group had a few hours to do whatever they wanted. So they packed up some stuff and headed down to the lake side. They sat and ate their lunch and sat and talked while James pulled out his guitar and started to play for a little while.

"Hey Jimmy, how's that song you two have been working on?" LeAnn wondered.

"It's going alright." he said. "Do you guys wanna hear it?" Sarah, Evan and LeAnn nodded their heads. James grinned and started strumming a beautiful tune.

"Just remember, it's not perfect just yet." Hannah warned. The others nodded once again.

[Hannah: _Italics _James: **Bold **Both: _**Bold Italics**_]

**I thought that dreams belonged to other men  
Cuz each time I got close, they'd fall apart again**

_I feared my heart would beat in secrecy_

_**I faced the nights alone  
Oh, how could I have known  
That all my life I only needed you?  
Whoa, almost paradise  
We're knocking on heaven's door  
Almost paradise  
How could we ask for more?  
I swear that I can see forever in your eyes  
Paradise**_

_I thought that perfect love was hard to find  
I'd almost given up  
You must've read my mind_

**And all those dreams I saved for a rainy day**

_**They're finally coming trye  
I'll share them all with you  
Cuz now we hold the future in our hands  
Whoa, almost paradise  
We're knocking on heaven's door  
Almost paradise  
How could we ask for more?  
I swear that I can see forever in your eyes  
Paradise**_

**And in your arms salvation's not so far away**

_It's getting closer_

_**Closer every day  
Almost paradise  
We're knocking on heaven's door  
Almost paradise  
How could we ask for more?  
I swear that I can see forever in your eyes  
Paradise  
Paradise**_

As James ended with the last note, the other three were staring at them in shock. They sounded so incredibly perfect together.

"Guys...that was..." LeAnn started.

"...Perfect." Evan added. Sarah nodded her head in agreement. The young couple grinned.

"Thanks. We really should be heading back now." James said. The others agreed and packed everything up. With James holding Hannah's hand and Evan with his arms around both Sarah and LeAnn, they set off back to camp.

A fresh breeze blew through the treetops as they walked back, sending shivers down Sarah's spine for some reason. They were laughing at something that Evan had said when she felt something hit her foot. Looking down, she couldn't believe her eyes when she saw the clear, glass-like orb resting by her left sneaker.

Sarah bent down and picked it up, wondering where it had come from. It couldn't be...it was impossible. But then again...it was him. And one of his rules was that everything was possible, and nothing is what it seems.

"Sarah, what is it?" LeAnn asked. But Sarah stayed quiet. She looked everywhere, trying to see if she wasn't imagining things. Suddenly, she started walking ahead, as if frantically searching for something. The others looked at her as if she was crazy. As fast as anything, Hannah and LeAnn raced after her, leaving the two guys behind, even more confused. James turned to his frined and shrugged as they followed where they went.

Sarah stopped running when she came to the campsite. She looked everywhere, trying to find something to prove that she wasn't seeing things. But there was nothing. Maybe it was just her mind playing tricks on her. Two and a half years without seeing him must have done something to her head. But that didn't explain the crystal. Maybe it fell out of her pocket...she had developed a habit of carrying it around with her, as if he was there with her.

"Sarah?!" She heard Hannah calling out. Sarah mentally kicked herself. She was in such a rush, she left the others behind her. She could hear the sound of feet running towards her and realized that her friends had come after her.

Sighing to herself, Sarah turned around and was prepared to walk back over to her friends when she stopped suddenly.A nd that's when she saw him. He was leaning casually against the wall. His clothes were different, wearing ripped jeans and a t-shirt. His hair was a great deal shorter, yet still stuck out in every direction. That infamous smirk played across his lips. Sarah mentally kicked herself again for not realizing it before...it was all making sense now.

She grinned as she broke into a run, racing over to him as fast as she could, leaving Hannah and LeAnn wondering what was going on. Sarah ran and jumped into his open arms as he spun her around before kissing her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, resting her forehead against his. Jareth grinned.

"I came to surprise you." he said. Sarah laughed.

"Well, it certainly worked." she said. Jareth laughed and let her down.

"So, what do you think?" he asked, gesturing to his new look. Sarah pretended to think about it, circling him as if criticizing him. She stood there, taking in his new apearence. Now, he looked so much younger, as if in his early twenties at most.

"Yep, you definately look mortal." she said.

"I know, terrible isn't it? I miss the glitter.' Jareth sulked.

"Remind me, I need to talk to you about that." she said. Jareth was about to say something when he noticed the others in the distance. Evan and James were now standing with the girls. All with the same confused look on their faces, wondering why Sarah was making out with the the new guy with gorgeous eyes.

"I think you need to explain things to your friends." he said. In all the excitement of seeing him there, Sarah had forgotten all about her friends back there. She figured it would look kind of strange that she ran off and jumped into the arms of the hot new guy, then started randomly making out with him. Sarah smiled and took his hand, leading him over to her friends.

"Guys, this is Jareth." Sarah said, introducing them. She had to bite her tongue, making sure she didn't actually let slip his full title. Both Hannah and LeAnn's eyes widened.

"_The _Jareth?!" they asked at the same time. The guys had similar expressions on their faces. Both Sarah and Jareth laughed at their reactions.

"I didn't realize that you've been talking about me, Love." he said. Sarah rolled her eyes.

"Jareth, this is LeAnn and Hannah." she said. Jareth grinned and took their hands one at a time, placing a gentle kiss on each, causing the girls to blush.

"The pleasure is mine, ladies." he said. Sarah rolled her eyes again.

"And this is Evan and James." she said. Jareth extended his hand and shook their hands.

"Wow, it's great to finally meet you. Sarah's told us so much about you." Evan said.

"Yeah...we were starting to believe that you didn't exist." James laughed. Hannah scowled and hit his arm.

"Hey, be nice." she said. Jareth chuckled.

"No, I understand." he said. "It's my fault that I haven't seen Sarah in a while...so I thought I would come and surprise her."

"We should probably leave you two alone." LeAnn said. "You guys have some catching up to do."

"Alright, uhh...we'll see you guys later." Sarah said. The others nodded and started walking away. Hannah at first didn't want to leave. Seh was still in shock that the hot new guy turned out to be Sarah's handsome prince. But James smiled apologetically at the couple before dragging his girlfriend away. Sarah and Jareth laughed before turning to each other.

"I'm so glad you're here." she said. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too, my love." Jareth said, pulling her closer to him once more. He took her hand and they walked away from the campsite.


	11. Unbelievable

**A/N: Hey everyone! I am so sorry that I haven't been able to update sooner. I moved house and had my end of year exams [which I passed all of them] and on top of all that my laptops been screwing up big time. **

**Hope you all enjoy this chapter, and review and let me know what you think.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth, or any of its characters. I do own James, Hannah, Evan and Eric so far.**

"So, how's everything in the Underground?" Sarah wondered. Jareth grinned as they walked hand-in-hand.

"Everything's fine." He said. "Your friends miss you…everyone misses you. It seems you made quite an impression during your visit."

"Is that so?" she asked. Jareth nodded.

"Everyone. Especially Ludo, Didymus and Hedgewart." He said.

"Hoggle." Sarah corrected with a smile.

"They eagerly await your return." Jareth said. "It seems things have changed." Sarah thought about this. Aside from the fear that the Labyrinth initially installed in its visitors, it actually was a beautiful place…except for the bog of course.

"Well, I heard about you considering to get rid of the bog." Sarah said, causing Jareth to laugh. "But has it really changed all that much?"

"Oh yes. The Labyrinth is not the same place as it once was. There is less to fear now." Jareth said.

"And the reason for that?" Sarah wondered. They stopped walking as Jareth turned to face her, resting his hand on her cheek.

"Their king has become a changed man." He said. "For the better." Sarah smiled as they continued along their way.

"Two and a half years have passed, my love." Jareth said. "How has it treated my future bride?" Sarah couldn't help but grin upon hearing this.

"Not too bad. Dragging my way through high school." She said. "Looking after Toby."

"And how is the young prince." Jareth wondered. It was a joke between them that if Sarah had failed the Labyrinth, Toby would not have been turned into a goblin, but a prince.

"He's fine. He'll be six next year." She said. Jareth sighed.

"Time seems to go by quickly…even for an immortal like myself." He said. Sarah nodded. The time had been getting away from her rather quickly.

"He's been…remembering things." Sarah said. Jareth stopped once again to look at her.

"He has?" he wondered. Sarah nodded.

"It's been going on for quite a while now. First it was stories; imaginative ramblings my parents called it, just something that happened when you were a toddler." She said. "Then he started drawing things, like the Escher room and some of the goblins. And he remembers you...it seems you've made a lasting impression on him. So of course he gets me to read him the story almost every night…with a different ending."

"And what does he think of the new ending?" Jareth wondered, with a small smile playing at his lips.

"He wants the girl in the story to marry the Goblin King." Sarah smiled.

"As do I." Jareth said. Sarah smiled. The two walked around in a comfortable silence for a while before Jareth spoke.

"Are you going to tell him?" he wondered.

"I'm going to have to." Sarah said. "I just don't want him to think that I'm a bad person for wishing him away."

"Impossible, my love." Jareth said. "But I do believe that it would be better for you to tell him, rather than him find out some other way. Especially if he is remembering so much."

"I will…soon." Sarah said. "And I'll tell my parents and the others."

"Your parents might be a little more difficult." Jareth said. "But I'm sure your friends won't mind at all." Sarah smiled.

"They basically know the whole story…minus the fact that you're an immortal king who lives in the underground." She said.

"Minor details." Jareth shrugged. Sarah smiled. She knew that things were going to work out fine.

oOoOoOoOoOo

That afternoon, Sarah sat at one of the outside tables with her friends. She smiled to herself as she watched Jareth talking with the others. It amazed her as to how easily the little white lies seemed to come to him. She was impressed as to how much detail he had put into his story. But he was getting on famously with her friends. Hannah and LeAnn loved him instantly, but then again, Jareth did have a certain charm about him.

At first James was a little sceptical, but that was only because he was so protective of Sarah. But as soon as the two got talking, he warmed up to Jareth. Once they got talking about music, it was as if they were long lost best friends.

"You've done good there, girl." Evan said, sitting down beside her. Sarah smiled.

"I have, haven't I?" she said. Evan grinned and nodded.

"Yep...he's gorgeous." he replied.

"Settle down there, honey." Hannah said. "He's very straight....and very, very taken."

"I know." Evan sulked. The girls laughed as they watched the two talk adamantly about something or another.

"So, I take it that I have your approval?" Sarah wondered. The girls, plus Evan, turned look at her.

"Uh…yes!" the three of them said together, making Sarah laugh.

"Well, I'm glad." She said. "Although, I must admit that I was worried about what James would think of him."

"Well, by the looks of it, you don't have to worry." LeAnn said.

"Yeah, your toughest critic has been won over." Hannah added. Evan shook his head.

"Nope…there's one more." He said. The three looked at him in confusion.

"Toby." He said. Sarah started coughing at the sound of her little brother's name.

"Hey, Sarah…are you okay?" LeAnn wondered. Sarah nodded and stopped coughing after a moment or two.

"Yeah, sorry. Scratchy throat." She lied. She didn't think it was the right moment to bring up the past…not yet.

Finally, the other two came over and sat down with the others.

"Finally decided to join us, have you?" Hannah asked, as James took a seat beside her. Both he and Jareth shrugged their shoulders nonchalantly.

"Maybe you should be worried, Sarah." LeAnn said. "Seems everyone's trying to steal prince charming away from you."

"Don't worry. I only have eyes for my Sarah." Jareth said, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. Sarah sighed contently as she rested her head in the crook of his neck. Both Hannah and LeAnn sighed dreamily, both wishing that they could have what Sarah had. Hannah turned to her boyfriend and slapped his arm.

"Hey! What the hell?" James wondered as he rubbed his arm.

"Why can't you be like that?!" Hannah wondered. The others laughed. Sarah looked up and saw Eric sitting by one of the cabins to the right of their table. She knew that she had to talk to him…especially after last night. Sighing inwardly, she got up from the table.

"I'll be back." She said. Jareth looked at her with a confused expression, but she gave him a reassuring smile before she walked away from the group. She wrapped her jacket around her as she made her way over to the cabin.

"Hey." She said, leaning casually against the veranda railings. Eric looked up at her and smiled.

"Hey." He said. He put down his book and looked up at her, before gazing over to her friends at the table. Each one of them was trying to disguise the fact that they were watching them.

"Your friends worried about you or something?" he wondered, nodding over to the table. Sarah looked over and sighed.

"Don't worry about them. They feel that they need to constantly live my life vicariously." She shrugged. Eric laughed.

"Not happy with their own lives?" he wondered. Sarah smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, something like that." She said. They both had a good laugh, but that soon faded as Eric felt Jareth watching them.

"So, is that your guy?" he wondered. Sarah looked up and followed his gaze before nodding.

"Yeah, that's him." She said, kicking a loose rock from beside her feet. Eric nodded.

"He seems like an alright guy." He said. Sarah noticed that he was looking at the ground as he spoke.

"Yeah…he is." She said.

"How long have you been together?" Eric wondered. Sarah sighed.

"Since I was fifteen." She said. Sarah looked up at him and saw that he was trying to put on a brave face. She could see the pain in his eyes.

"So it's serious." He said. It wasn't a question. Sarah looked to her hand and fiddled with her ring.

"yeah." she said. Eric looked up and smiled.

"You know, I meant what I said last night." He said. "About us being friends. That is, if you want to?" Sarah smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, I'd like that." She said. Suddenly she felt someone at her side. She turned to see Jareth standing by her side.

"Everything alright, love?" he wondered. Sarah looked down at Eric and nodded.

"Yeah, everything's fine." She said. But Sarah couldn't help but notice the look on Eric's face when Jareth showed up. It was a kind of emotion that she couldn't place.

"Oh, uhh...Jareth, this is Eric." Sarah said introducing the two before looks could kill. Jareth smiled pleasantly and extended his hand. Eric got up and, after glancing at his hand, gave Jareth a forced, friendly handshake.

"Pleasure to meet you." Jareth said.

"Yeah…likewise." Eric said. Jareth stared at him for a moment, as if he had seen his face before.

"I'm sorry, have we met?" he wondered. "Your face seems familiar."

"No." Eric said. "I don't think so." Sarah looked back and forth between the two, trying to figure out the emotions on their faces.

"Well, I guess I'll see you around, Sarah." Eric said as he picked up his book. Sarah couldn't find her voice, still trying to figure it all out, so she nodded her head. With one last look at Jareth, Eric disappeared inside his cabin.

"You okay, love?" Jareth wondered. Sarah looked up at him and smiled.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She said. Jareth smiled and kissed her hand before they made their way back to the others.

oOoOoOoOoOo

Later that night, the girls and Evan were sitting in the girl's cabin relaxing after a busy day of classes and, of course, Jareth's appearance.

"So how did it go with Eric?" Hannah wondered, flipping through a magazine. Sarah laughed from her spot of her bed and put her book aside.

"Like you lot weren't trying to listen?" she said. The other three shrugged innocently. "It went okay, I guess. He asked about Jareth and whether or not it was serious…and that he still wanted to be friends."

"So, neither of you brought up the kiss?" Evan asked. He was sitting on the end of one of the beds, braiding LeAnn's hair. Sarah shook her head.

"No…Jareth showed up before that." She said. "But I'm glad. It's all water under the bridge now." She said. Suddenly, there was a small sound coming from the window. Sarah got up and looked out before smiling.

"Oh, Hannah." She said. The blonde looked up. Sarah smiled and nodded to the window.

"Lover boy's here." She said. Hannah grinned and jumped up from her bed and ran over to Sarah's.

"Hey Jimmy Dean," Evan wondered. "There is such a thing as a door, you know?" Hannah glared at him before she opened the window.

"What are you doing?" she wondered. Within a matter of seconds, James' head appeared.

"Well, you complain about me not being 'romantic' enough." James said. "So, I've come to take you out."

"You're crazy." Hannah laughed. James smiled.

"I know." He said. "Come on. I've got the bike ready to go. What do you say, kid?" Hannah smiled and rushed to get her shoes and jacket.

"I'll see you guys later." She said. "Don't wait up." The other three shook their heads as the young couple left the cabin.

"Those two are unbelievable." LeAnn said. Sarah grinned and returned to her book. Not five minutes later, the group heard another sound; this time, it was an owl. Sarah smiled as she saw a shadow moving on the veranda, and within seconds, Jareth appeared at her window.

"Care for a walk, Milady?" he asked. Sarah smiled as she remembered him saying the exact same thing all those years ago. She nodded her head and put her book away before following Hannah's example and grabbed her shoes and jacket.

"I'll see you guys later." She said as she escaped out the door. LeAnn and Evan looked to each other.

"Like I said…unbelievable." LeAnn repeated. Evan grinned.

"Don't worry, you've still got me."

oOoOoOoOoOo

"What was with you and Eric before?" Sarah wondered as she and Jareth sat by the lake.

"I don't know." He said. "There's something familiar about him…but I can't quite put my finger on it."

"I'm sure it's nothing." Sarah said. "and if it is, I'm sure you'll figure it out soon."

oOoOoOoOoOo

Eric stood silently beneath the cover of darkness, with the exception of a few stray beams of moonlight that escaped from the tall branches of the trees.

"I gave you one simple task, and yet you have failed me."

"you asked me to find out if they were together and I did." Eric said.

"Your task required you to make sure that Jareth was out of the picture. I cannot have him marrying this girl and ruining everything!"

"I tried…"

"I do not want to hear your feeble excuses about trying!"

"I don't want to hurt her." Eric vowed.

"you will do whatever is necessary for this to work, do you understand me?!"

"yes."

"Does she know?"

"No."

"Then he hasn't told her. I shall give you one last chance. You must see that Jareth and this…Sarah are over, by any means necessary, do you understand?!"

"Yes." Eric sighed as his head fell.

"Good. You know what shall happen if you fail…again."

Eric nodded once more before heading back to the campsite.

**A/N2: So, what did you think? Who was Eric talking to? What were they talking about? REVIEW and let me know!**

**Also, I need some ideas about Jareth meeting Toby again and Sarah's parents, and some things to include about the other characters as well. **


	12. Reading, Arguments and unexpected calls

**A/N: Hi everyone! I am so, so, so sorry that I haven't updated this story in so long. I've had a few exams for school and have been completely swamped in homework. Also, I've been job hunting to save some money for my trip to America in December. And on top of all that, this story has been a bit low on the inspiration side; I've actually had a pretty good idea of where I want to go with it...it's just getting there that's the problem. So if you guys have any ideas or suggestions, I will be so very grateful. **

**Disclaimer: As usual, I don't own the Labyrinth, or any of its characters. [If only] they belong to Jim Henson and all of those other wonderful people. I do, however, own Hannah, James, Evan, Eric and a few other bits and bobs.**

When Sarah woke up the next morning, she didn't recognise where she was. She could have sworn that she had fallen asleep when she was walking with Jareth the night before, how could she have ended up in her bed? But then again, it was Jareth.

Sitting up, Sarah glanced around the room. LeAnn was still asleep in her bed across the room. Sarah stretched her neck a little to check on Hannah in the top bunk...but she wasn't in her bed. Confused, she got out of bed and walked over to the bunks, making sure that she wasn't seeing things. But Hannah was nowhere to be seen.

"She's not up there, is she?" LeAnn mumbled from below. Sarah shook her head as she run her hand through her hair.

"Nope. I guess Jimmy kept her out all night." She laughed. LeAnn sighed and shook her head.

"Those two are out of their minds." She said. Sarah smiled.

"Yeah, I know." She said. She glanced out the door and sighed. It was too nice a day to go back to bed. She turned back to LeAnn, who was now burying herself under the covers once more.

"You gonna get up?" Sarah wondered. LeAnn shook her head.

"No way! I don't have any classes till this afternoon. I am in need of a good sleep in...Which you're preventing right now, Ms Williams." She said. Sarah couldn't help but laugh at this. She headed back over to her side of the room and got dressed.

She threw her jumper over her jeans, pulled her sneakers on her feet and pulled her hair into a messy ponytail before she headed towards the door.

"I'm gonna go look for them, are you sure you wanna stay here?" she asked. LeAnn responded by waving her friend away, fluffing her pillow and settling back down to sleep. Sarah simply shook her head and headed outside, letting the door close behind her gently.

It was a beautiful day outside. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and people moved excitedly to breakfast or to get ready for their first class of the day. Glancing around, she looked for any sign of Jareth or one of her friends.

It wasn't like James and Hannah to be out all night like this. Sure, it wasn't the first time they snuck out of the camp, but usually they were back before the sun was up. She hoped that nothing serious happened to them. She shook her mind free of those thoughts. They probably lost track of the time, or Jimmy's bike blew a tyre or something.

"Hey, Sarah!" someone called out from behind her. Sarah turned around and saw Evan making his way towards her, with his trusty Polaroid camera in his hand. He ran over and was by her side in a matter of moments. Before Sarah could say anything, Evan lifted the camera and took a picture.

"Morning Evan." Sarah sighed. Evan grinned and wrapped an arm around her shoulders as he waved the newly developed picture about.

"How are we this fine morning?" He wondered. Sarah rolled her eyes and scratched her head as if thinking really hard about something.

"Now, let me see. Is this a real question or is it Evan-talk?" she wondered to herself. Evan cocked an eyebrow.

"Evan-talk?" he wondered. Sarah laughed and nodded.

"Yeah, it's what we call it when you ask a question but mean something entirely different." She explained.

"Like?" Evan wondered.

"Well, now for instance. You could genuinely be asking me how I am, or actually wondering how last night was after I left." Sarah said.

"Ohhh....wait, you guys actually have a name for that?" Evan asked. Sarah nodded.

"I must say, that's pretty cool." Evan said. "But I was actually asking you how you were." Sarah gave him a disbelieving look, causing him to put his hands up in defence. "Honestly!"

"Swear on Yale?" Sarah wondered. Evan rolled his eyes and nodded.

"Swear on Yale." He said, crossing his chest for extra proof. When they were trying to really prove something, the guys asked Evan to 'swear on Yale'.

When he finished high school, Evan wanted to go to Yale and study medicine so he could become a doctor. Although, he hadn't heard anything after he sent in his application, so he was starting to give up hope, even with the others telling him he was a shoe in.

"Okay, I believe you." Sarah said. "And don't roll your eyes. You're going to get in!"

"If you say so." Evan said, still not fully believing her. "You still haven't answered my question."

"I'm fine, thankyou." Sarah said. "Although, I'm on a mission."

"A mission?" Evan wondered. Sarah nodded.

"I'm determined to find out where James and Hannah ended up." She said.

"You mean they didn't come back?" Evan wondered. Sarah shook her head.

"You didn't notice that James wasn't there?" she asked. Evan shrugged.

"Honey, I wouldn't notice if a cyclone came and took me to Kansas." He said. Sarah grinned and had to agree.

"Well, I guess they had a pretty good night then." She said. Evan grinned wickedly suddenly.

"Well, while we're on the subject...how was last night?" he wondered cheekily. Sarah sighed.

"How did I know that was coming?" she wondered. Evan shrugged.

"It was fine. We went for a walk and talked; just catching up...that's all." She said, noticing the look on his face.

"Alright, I believe you." Evan said. "Come on; let's see if we can find Miss Nolan and Master Cooper before nightfall."

They walked around for a little bit in search of James and Hannah. Neither one had a class until later that afternoon, so they weren't in a huge rush or anything. They checked in all the usual places, even a few unusual ones...but they couldn't find the couple anywhere.

"Okay, this is getting ridiculous." Sarah said. They had searched almost the entire camp, and there was still no sign of their friends. "They have to be somewhere."

She was about to check by the dining room when Evan stopped her. Looking at him questioningly, Sarah noticed that he was pointing towards the art shed. There, lying on the ground by the shed was a pair of familiar black boots.

Evan held a finger to his lips as the two raced over to the art shed. Carefully peeking around the corner, they found Hannah and James asleep on the ground by the shed. Jimmy's arm was wrapped around her protectively and his leather jacket was draped over them, acting as a blanket.

"Should we wake them?" Sarah wondered. Evan contemplated this for a moment, before nodding. He grabbed his camera and got down really close to them. When he was ready he snapped a picture.

The couple on the ground awoke suddenly, thanks to the flash of the camera. Both Sarah and Evan couldn't contain their laughter. When Hannah and James finally looked up, they sighed in annoyance.

"Good morning Madam and Monsieur. This is your ten am wake up call." Sarah laughed.

"What the hell, man?" James wondered. Hannah sighed and hid her face against his chest and pulled the jacket over her head.

"Hey, you know if you stay out like that, you deserve a wake up call." Evan said, fanning the picture. James rolled his eyes and turned around to go back to sleep.

"Not a good idea." Sarah said. "Although we don't have any classes till later, it's probably better if you both actually make an appearance today."

Hannah sighed and moved the jacket from her eyes. She turned a little so that he was facing James.

"She's got a point." She said. James sighed, not wanting to admit that he agreed with them. Sarah held out her arm and helped Hannah to her feet.

"So, good night last night?" Sarah wondered. Hannah smiled a little and shrugged her shoulders. Sarah raised her eyebrow at her friend, but dropped the subject.

"Where are LeAnn and Jareth?" Hannah wondered.

"LeAnn's still in bed. She didn't want to waste her sleep in." Sarah said. Hannah nodded her in understanding. "And...I haven't actually seen Jareth since last night."

"Don't worry; I'm sure he's around here somewhere." Hannah said. Sarah nodded. As the four of them headed back towards the cabins, they saw LeAnn sitting on the chair outside their cabin with a broom in her hand.

"What happened to the sleep in?" Sarah asked. LeAnn shrugged.

"What can I say...I couldn't get back to sleep." She said. Sarah smiled apologetically.

"So I came out here for a while and noticed this." LeAnn said, gesturing to the ground. The others looked down and noticed an insane amount of glitter on the ground around the cabin. Sarah's eyes widened in shock, knowing that _he_ had something to do with it.

"Whoa, who OD'd on the glitter?" James wondered as he and Evan arrived at the cabin. Before anyone else could say anything, Hannah saw something.

"Looks like our friend's back." She said, pointing to the sky. The others looked up and saw a familiar white owl flying around the back of the cabin.

"He's been around here a lot, hasn't he?" Evan wondered. Sarah shook her head and chuckled a little. Thankfully nobody noticed. A moment or two later, Jareth walked over to them.

"Good morning." He said. The others turned around, a little startled at his sudden appearance.

"Morning, Jareth." They said. Jareth smiled and pulled Sarah closer to him, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"What are we looking at?" he asked.

"The insanely huge splatter of glitter on our doorstep." Hannah said. Jareth's eyes widened, just like Sarah's as he looked at her. Sarah tried her best to contain her smile as she brushed a speckle of glitter out of his hair.

"Be more careful next time." She said softly. Jareth nodded before leaning in and kissing her.

"So, where have you been all morning?" Sarah asked.

"I just left to check up on a few things." Jareth said cryptically. Sarah cocked her head to the side in confusion.

"Well, I can't leave the entire kingdom for two weeks without checking in every now and then, can I?" Jareth wondered. Sarah rolled her eyes.

"No, I guess not." She said. "How is everything?"

"No permanent damage." Jareth shrugged. "I only had to kick a couple of Goblins before I left."

"Jareth!" Sarah said. "Is it really necessary to kick them all the time?"

"Sarah, they put a hole in one of the walls in the throne room." Jareth said dryly.

"Oh." Sarah said. Jareth grinned and kissed the top of her head.

"They'll be pleased to know that you care so much for them, dearest." He said.

"Well, while you both were in your own little world, we managed to get all this glitter cleaned up." LeAnn said. Jareth and Sarah turned around and smiled weakly.

"Sorry." They said. The others simply rolled their eyes.

"Come on let's go get something to eat." James suggested.

oOoOoOoOoOo

Eric wandered around the campsite aimlessly. He hated having to be involved in this...but he didn't have a choice. He didn't have long to complete his task. He didn't want to...but he didn't want to think about what would happen if he failed again. People would be hurt...people he cared about.

He walked silently down to the lake, hoping to get some idea about what to do next.

oOoOoOoOoOo

Hannah, LeAnn and Sarah were sitting at a table waiting for the guys to bring back something for lunch. Hannah sat Indian style on the top of the table, deeply absorbed in a book...with a red leather cover.

"Oh my god, Sarah!" she sighed. "I can see why you love this book so much!"

"Why, what's it say?" LeAnn wondered.

"Just all of it!" Hannah said. "I wish that I had read this sooner!" She flicked a couple of pages until she found something. "Look here;"

'_Everything you have wanted I have done. You asked that the child be taken. I took him. You cowered before me. I was frightening. I have reordered time. I have turned the world upside down, and I have don't it all for you.'_

Sarah sighed to herself as she remembered Jareth speaking those exact words to her three years before.

"This Goblin King sounds like a total babe." Hannah sighed. Sarah couldn't help laughing at that.

"Are you out of your mind?" LeAnn wondered. "He's the typical villain."

"Yeah...and that's hot." Hannah retorted. Sarah rolled her eyes and laughed at her friends. She had never been more thankful that his name was never revealed in the book.

"Well, what about this?" LeAnn said, pointing to a passage in the book.

'_Look what I'm offering you; your dreams. I ask for so little. Just let me rule you, and you can have everything that you want. Just fear me, love me, do as I say and I will be your slave.'_

"Even then she's still saying the words." LeAnn said. That last paragraph made Sarah shiver at the memory. One of her biggest regrets was not listening to him while he was offering her everything. She still said those words...the words she hadn't spoken in three long years.

After arguing a little more, Hannah went back to reading the book, eager to know what happened next. The guys came back from the dining hall with some stuff for lunch.

"What are you reading?" James asked Hannah as he sat down beside her.

"Shh!" she urged, waving him away so she could continue the book. "I'm at the good part!" James looked at his girlfriend before looking at the others.

"Care to shed some light on this?" he asked, pointing to the blonde with her nose in the book.

"She finally managed to pry the book away from Sarah and is now totally in love with the Labyrinth and the Goblin King." LeAnn said. Jareth looked at Sarah with a mixture of shock and amusement.

"Lucky he's a fictional character. Otherwise I think you'd have a bit of competition, Jimmy." Evan laughed. James scoffed and puffed up his chest.

"Right, I'd show that so-called Goblin King what for." He said. The others couldn't help laughing. Sarah glanced over at Jareth and was happy to find that he was laughing too.

They sat there at the table eating lunch while Hannah occasionally stopped to take a bite but then continued where she left off.

"So, are you guys going fro the BoB this year?" Evan wondered. James pulled the fork out of his mouth and nodded.

"Of course." He said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Jareth looked on confusedly.

"What's the BoB?" he asked.

"The Battle of the Bands." Sarah explained. "James and his band try out every year."

"I see." Jareth said. James nodded.

"The winner gets five thousand dollars and a chance at a record deal." He said.

"You'll get there someday." LeAnn said.

"WHAT?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Hannah cried suddenly. The others stopped instantly and looked at her, wondering what was going on.

"What?" James asked. Hannah turned to Sarah.

"She turns him down?!" she cried. "But...but...why?!"

Sarah looked at her in surprise. She quickly glanced at Jareth who was looking at her out of the corner of his eyes.

"I...I don't know." Sarah said quietly. Both she and Jareth had a small, pained expression on their faces, knowing it was not just a story, but a memory.

"But....she can't!" Hannah insisted. "She can't just leave him..."

"What exactly happened?" LeAnn wondered.

"She finally remembered the words...she said them." Hannah said. Evan and James looked at each other confused, neither one having any idea what the hell they were talking about.

"What words?" Evan asked. Sarah's eyes widened. Hannah flicked back a page.

'_Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered, I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City to take back the child that you have stolen.'_

Sarah looked up at Jareth. His face looked pained as he relived the memory.

'_For my will is as strong as yours, and my kingdom is as great... You have...'_

"Don't say it!" Sarah said suddenly. Hannah stopped before she could finish the line. Jareth looked over at her and smiled gratefully. The others looked at her confused.

"I...I just don't like that part...I don't like the ending." Sarah said, covering up.

"Me either." Hannah said, closing the book and putting it on the table. "I think she should have stayed with him."

"He was going to turn her little brother into a goblin for crying out loud!" LeAnn said. Hannah shook her head.

"I don't think he would have." She said. "They should have stayed together, got married and lived happily ever after."

"You're obsessed with romance, Hannah." Evan said. Hannah smiled and nodded. James grinned and pulled her off the table onto his lap. Sarah smiled and reached across and held Jareth's hand. He smiled in return and squeezed hers in return.

They finished their lunch and joked around for a while before one of the councillors walked over to them.

"Mr. Miller, come with me." The councillor said. There was a chorus of "oooohhh" from the others. Evan looked at him in surprise.

"Geez, what'd you do now, Evan?" James wondered jokingly. Evan rolled his eyes and got out of his seat before walking with the councillor.

"Well, it was nice knowing you, buddy." James called out. Without looking back, Evan flipped him off before walking away. James laughed and turned back to the others.

"What's he done?" he asked. Hannah sighed and playfully hit him.

"It's probably just phone call from home or something." She said. The others agreed.

They started up another conversation; James and Jareth talked about the Bob, and Hannah and LeAnn argued about the book once more. After a while, Sarah found it weird that Evan hadn't come back, so she decided to go look for him.

She told the others she would be back in a minute and got up from the table. She wandered around looking for him for a moment before deciding to go check the office to see if he was on the phone. The councillors had one room with phones that the students could use if they got a call of had to contact home.

As she was about to head inside, the same councillor that got Evan walked out.

"Oh, Miss Williams. Just the person I was looking for." He said. Sarah looked at him confused.

"You're expecting a call. Someone rang for you a few minutes ago but they told me they will call back in a few minutes." The councillor said.

"Who was it?" Sarah wondered.

"I believe it was your brother." The councillor said before walking off. Sarah's smile widened as she raced inside. As she made it into the office, she saw Evan hang up the phone.

"Oh, here you are." She said. It was then she got a good look at his face. He looked kind of emotionless. "What's wrong?"

"That was my Mom." Evan said slowly. "They got a letter from Yale." Sarah's eyes widened in shock.

"And?" she asked impatiently. Evan looked up at her slowly.

"I...I got in." He said. Sarah smiled and ran over to hug him.

"Evan, that's fantastic! I knew that you would!" she said. Evan finally snapped himself out of his shocked daze and hugged her back.

"I can't believe it. I actually got in." He beamed as they parted. "I gotta go tell everyone else!"

"Okay. I've gotta wait here. Toby's gonna call soon." Sarah said. "Tell the others I'm here."

Evan nodded and headed out of the office. Sarah smiled and sat down at the desk waiting for the call. Finally, after a few minutes, the phone rang. Sarah immediately jumped up and answered it.

"Hello?" she answered happily.

_Sarah!_

"Toby! How are you?"

_I'm good. I miss you though_

"Awww, honey. I miss you too. But I'll be home in a week."

_I know. Mommy and Daddy said to say hello. They told me that I could call you all by myself this time!_

"Wow, that's pretty cool isn't it?" Sarah laughed.

_Yeah. How's camp?_

"It's fun. Everyone says to say hello and they'll see you soon."

_Okay! _

"How's school?"

_Pretty good. Although, Matthew parks threw sand at me the other day._

"What? Why?"

_I don't know. _

"Did you tell your teacher?"

_No. I didn't need to. I told him that if he's mean to me again the goblins would come and get him._

"And did it work?"

_Yep! He ran away._

"Good boy Toby. "

_Hey Sarah?_

"Yeah?"

_I keep having those dreams again._

"The ones like the book?"

_Yeah._

"Are they scary?"

_No. They're fun. I'm surrounded by all these goblins...and the goblin king himself! He dances around and sings to me...then he kicked a goblin._

"They don't hurt you?"

_No...They only hurt the people who are mean to me...like Matthew Parks._

Sarah couldn't help but laugh. She was glad that Toby wasn't scared by his memories of the Labyrinth. In fact, it seemed as though he kinda idolized Jareth. It was going to make meeting him again so much easier.

As she listened to Toby talk about his dreams, she heard the door open. She turned around and saw Jareth, James and Hannah there. Evan and LeAnn probably had to go get ready for their class.

"Is that Toby?" Hannah mouthed silently. Sarah smiled and nodded.

"Hey, Kiddo? I think there are a couple of people here that want to say hello to you." She said. "So I'll talk to you soon okay."

_Okay Sarah. Love you._

"I love you too. Bye Toby." She said. She took the phone away from her ear and held it out. Both James and Hannah smiled and ran over Hannah took the phone from Sarah while James grabbed the other line.

"Hey Toby! How are you?" Hannah asked. Sarah smiled as she walked over to Jareth.

"They get along well with Toby?" he asked, wrapping his arms around her. Sarah nodded.

"Oh yeah." She said. "They're the best of friends."

"Oh wow, that's awesome, buddy." James said on the phone.

"Is he still remembering things?" Jareth wondered.

"Yeah. He says he's been having more dreams about being surrounded by Goblins...and you. You were singing and dancing...and kicking goblins." She said. Jareth simply laughed a little.

"Alright sweetie, we'll see you real soon, okay?" Hannah said. They said their goodbyes and got off the phone.

"He said he wants us to come over and see him soon." James said.

"Well, you still have to finish giving him guitar lessons." Sarah laughed as they headed back to get ready for classes.

oOoOoOoOoOo

Eric sat in the shadow of a large tree in the woods. He was running out of time. He had to come up with something before it was too late. He had to some how break up Jareth and Sarah...but how?

oOoOoOoOoOo

Later that night, the group had set up their own mini campfire. They had all gathered around with cups of hot chocolate, huddling close to the flames to fight away the night air that was starting to settle in.

"Hey, I've been thinking." James said.

"That's never a good thing." Evan interrupted, making the others laugh. James flipped him off nonchalantly before continuing.

"This is serious. I was thinking, now that we're eighteen...will we be coming back next year?" he asked. Everyone went quiet, pondering the question.

Sarah knew that Jareth wouldn't be coming back, he shouldn't have even been there now! And now Evan was going to school. James and Hannah would probably do something else with their lives, so would LeAnn. And she had so much she wanted to do before she married Jareth and moved to the Underground.

"I don't think we're coming back." LeAnn said quietly. The others stayed silent.

"That's hard to imagine." Hannah said. "I mean, we've spent the past three years here. This is where we all met. This is our place...it's like the end of an era."

"In a way, yes." Sarah said. "But it's not the end. No way."

"Sarah's right. I mean, we'll still all see each other...right?" James asked. The others nodded, even, much to Sarah's surprise and delight, Jareth. After a moment or two, Evan raised his cup.

"To the best three years of our lives." He said. the others smiled and raised their cups too.

"We've got one more week...let's make it count!" LeAnn said.

"Hear, hear!"

**A/N: Well, there you have it. I hope you all enjoyed it. I wasn't entirely sure about the little snippets with Eric, but I had to put them out there. If you have any ideas about what's going on there, please let me know. REVIEWS and other suggestions are welcome :)**


	13. IMPORTANT PLEASE READ

Hey all.

I am so so sorry that I have taken so long to update this story, even though this isn't really an update.

I love writing this story, I really do. But my time has been taken up so much lately, and damn writers block hardly helps at all. Also, I was wondering to myself whether the story seems a little rushed. Should I space out the time between when Sarah runs the Labyrinth and the night she and Jareth confess their love? PLEASE! Let me know.

So, what I am proposing is that I will probably take this story down and start again [which I seem to be doing to a lot of my stories lately]. I will later have time to review it, see what needs work or adding too or new ideas or anything. Then, when I have time, I will repost it. [please let me know if you honestly agree with me]

I just want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has stuck by this story. Also, please keep an eye out so that you don't miss out when it starts. I hope that doesn't happen because I know a fair few people were enjoying the story. So please, keep a look out for the reposting.

But please, feel free to message me with any ideas that you may have in the meantime.

Thanks once again...your faith in this story has been much appreciated and it's what has kept this story going.

Taylor [Musicallife17]


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